George H. W. Bush Papers

This series consists of personal, business, and political files primarily documenting George H. W. Bush's life in Texas from 1948 to 1966. The series is divided into five subseries: Personal Alphabetical Files, Business Alphabetical Files, Business Correspondence Files, Political Alphabetical Files, and Political Correspondence Files.

The subseries Personal Alphabetical Files contains records of a personal nature kept by George H. W. Bush during the years 1946, when he was a student at Yale University, to 1966, when he was first elected to the United States Congress. The bulk of these files are from 1952 to 1964. While these are personal records, most appear to have been maintained in Bush's business offices and coincide with his tenure with the Bush-Overbey Oil Development Company, Zapata Petroleum Company, and Zapata Off-Shore Company. A significant number of these files contain material related to Bush's numerous civic and charitable activities while living in Midland and Houston, Texas. Other files cover Bush's work for Republican campaigns, his personal correspondence, material related to the oil industry, Bush's work as an employee of Dresser Industries and its subsidiaries, and his work as a member of the board of directors for several organizations. Also included is a significant amount of financial material, including bank statements, cancelled checks, insurance policies, and investment information. Finally, while these records have been designated as personal in nature, interfiled with this material is information related to Bush's business ventures. It should be noted that this subseries contains one file, Orders/Navy, which relates to Bush's service in the United States Navy during World War II.

The subseries Business Alphabetical Files contains records related to the operations of Zapata Off-Shore Company. These materials were maintained in a subject-based filing system and for the most part were generated after 1959, the year Bush moved Zapata Off-Shore's headquarters to Houston. Records of note in this subseries include material pertaining to Bush's efforts to merge his business with other companies and the endeavor to sell his interest in the company so he could concentrate on his campaign for the United States Congress. It is apparent that these are only a portion of the files kept by Zapata Off-Shore Company during these years. Employees of Zapata Off-Shore generated numerous files after Bush had given up any managerial functions within the company or on its board of directors.

The subseries Business Correspondence Files contains correspondence related to the business ventures of George H. W. Bush while working in Midland and Houston, Texas. While some of this correspondence dates from the early 1950s when Bush was associated with the Bush-Overbey Oil Development Company, the bulk was generated during Bush's tenure as president of Zapata Off-Shore Company. Of this material, most records consist of copies of Bush's out-going correspondence for the 1959 and 1960 calendar years. In addition, there are also copies of inter-office memoranda sent and received by management-level employees of Zapata Off-Shore Company. The correspondence files do not seem to be complete; only certain years of materials are present.

The subseries Political Alphabetical Files contains material related to George H. W. Bush's political activities in Texas prior to 1964. The majority of these documents were created or accumulated during Bush's tenure as Chairman of the Harris County Republican Party in 1963. This includes campaign literature, texts of Republican platforms, news clippings, and press releases. Correspondence in this material includes routine letters as well as correspondence with Republican leaders, such as Senator John Tower. Records related to efforts by George H. W. Bush to raise funds for other political candidates and campaigns can be found in these files. More substantial documents concerning his political activities while in Midland can be located in the subseries Personal Alphabetical Files.

The subseries Political Correspondence Files contains correspondence and related documents pertaining to George H. W. Bush's political activities during his years in Midland and Houston. Most files focus on Bush's role as chair of the Harris County Republican Party and compliment and overlap records found in his political alphabetical files. This includes letters concerning routine party business, such as appointment of precinct chairs and other leadership positions, fundraising efforts undertaken in the county, plans for the 1964 primary season, and correspondence with state Republican headquarters. Also prominent in the files is material related to efforts by Bush and other Harris County Republicans to broaden the party's appeal, especially among African-American and Hispanic voters. Correspondence announcing Bush's planned run for the U.S. Senate in 1964 is also located in these files, but there are no substantive records related to the campaign. In addition to correspondence related to his work as Harris County chairman, there are a few records that relate to his political involvement in Republican politics prior to 1963, including his tenure as Republican Finance Chair for District 29.